The most recent issue of the CSPA Quarterly, which called for work related to International initiatives, is now available on MagCloud.com. The issue includes contributions from ARTPORT, Arts In The One World, Forum for the Future, Moe Beitiks, Roberta Holden, Emily Mendelson, and Shinji Turner-Yamamoto. Installation, public policy, photography, and theater are all represented in Issue Five.

Submissions are now being accepted for issues seven and eight. Topics for these issues are Art and Agriculture and Nature vs. Nurture. The sixth issue, to be released in June, will feature projects that make the invisible visible.

Art & Agriculture

Our livelihood depends on both, yet both seem to be endangered in the non-commercial realm. What happens when art and agriculture collide? This issue will feature projects that are related to today’s agriculture and will explore the connection between the two.

Art & Agriculture Deadline for Submission: June 1, 2011

Nature vs. Nurture

For this issue, we are interested projects and stories that match nature to nurture, art to science, human to machine. What defines nature in urban environments, and what is our natural relationship to it? What is happening to our sense of cultural sustainability in a digital age? Are societies impacted more by art or science? And, how are natural and synthetic environments interchangeable?

Nature vs. Nurture Deadline for Submission: July 1, 2011.

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

We are now accepting submissions for our next two issues: The last of 2010 focusing on International Action, with a special section dedicated to COP16 Cancun, and the first issue of 2011 on art that makes the invisible visible.

International Action

Please share with us any work that creatively addresses global issues in sustainability. We are particularly interested in projects happening outside of the United States that pay attention to global dilemmas including global warming, rising sea levels, disappearing cultures, and economic divides. A special section will be dedicated to work at the UN’s Conference of the Parties, summit on climate change in Cancun in December.

International Action Deadline for Submission: January 10, 2011

Invisible Visibility

For this issue, we are interested in art projects, installations, and performances that visualize invisible threats to our environmental, economic, or cultural sustainability. How can our creative industries call public attention to major issues that are easy to ignore because they are ‘out of sight, out of mind?’

Invisible Visibility Deadline for Submission: February 1, 2011.

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

In response to the CSPA Convergence, our next Quarterly will revolve around work that somehow makes the invisible visible. We’re looking for work that calls attention to what cannot be seen, relative to environmental sustainability or social equity.

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

The summer edition of the CSPA Quarterly is now open for submissions! The issue will go to print late August.

For this issue, we’re interested in exploring the sustainability of digital work. What is the life-cycle of digital art? How can digital media impact performance? Is digital art-making “green?” What is lost when work is in the digital realm? And, what is gained? What happens when technology advances? And, as always, what is being sustained (the earth, the artist, the community)?

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

The summer edition of the CSPA Quarterly is now open for submissions! The issue will go to print late August.

For this issue, we’re interested in exploring the sustainability of digital work. What is the life-cycle of digital art? How can digital media impact performance? Is digital art-making “green?” What is lost when work is in the digital realm? And, what is gained? What happens when technology advances? And, as always, what is being sustained (the earth, the artist, the community)?

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

The third edition of the CSPA Quarterly is now open for submissions. This time around, we’re hoping to cover art made from found objects and existing materials. Spring cleaning for the spring issue, if you will! Many of you are working with existing materials to create work- let us know what you’ve been up to!

Questions to consider: What dictates the “sustainability” of the work? If the found objects are made of plastic, is the work green? If the materials are raw, but held together with chemical adhesives, is the work green? Musicians or media artists: how does using existing material affect the sustainability of culture, and fight against limitations of copyright? Performance and theater artists: are you making work with found objects, set pieces, or written material?

The CSPA Quarterly explores sustainable arts practices in all genres, and views sustainability in the arts through environmentalism, economic stability, and cultural infrastructure. The periodical provides a formal terrain for discussion, and seeks to elevate diverse points of view.

The second edition of the CSPA Quarterly is close to publication! It will be available by the end of the month. The second issue focuses on international eco-policy; policy’s effect on the arts, and arts’ effect on policy. Events and installations from COP15 will be featured, including the CO2 Cube, the Seven Meters installations leading to the Bella Center, and others.

In celebration of the new year, we’ll be publishing last quarter’s articles to the blog. Keep your eye out for articles written by Sam Goldblatt, Moe Beitiks, Linda Weintraub, Patricia Watts, Thomas Rhodes, and Olivia Campbell.

Submissions are accepted year-round for the quarterly, and all content is volunteer-based. Articles, Academic Papers, Case Studies, and photos can be sent to me at: Miranda @SustainablePractice.org

We’ve arrive back in the apartment after our second day in Copenhagen. I will refrain from saying we’re here for Cop15, because, while I’m interested in what’s going on in there, I’m really here to see the creative responses collected in this place at this time. That isn’t to say we didn’t go to the Bella Center, we did, but it’s not our primary goal.

I had the opportunity to check in with Martin Rosengaard of Wooloo.org while Miranda was delayed in London, as well as get a very helpful and personal tour of the city on bike by our host (and sterling scenographer) Sara Vilslev, a friend from the 2007 Prague Quadrennial.

On Sunday we headed to the Bright Green Expo at the Forum. It is the concurrent trade show for green tech during COP15. There was a promise of the inclusion of cultural programming, so it seemed like a good place to start. The Cultural programming really consisted of a DJ/VJ set for about an hour by CPH:DOX remixing Cities on Speed. We moved on pretty quickly: green-tech (good or green-washing) is green-tech. We’re into it, but it’s better covered elsewhere.

Afterwards we returned for some quality time with the work at Hopenhagen Live. This green glowing cluster of portable exhibition rooms showcased policy, the integration of sustainable solutions into the city scape and some creative interpretations highlighting everyday relationships to the environment. A favorite was The Apartment, seen in a quick video here:

We wandered to the Polar Ice Bear to check it’s melt status, slowed by the freezing temperatures we’ve dipped into. After dinner we headed over to the CO2 Cube Reception, which was a high class affair, no pictures, but we did catch some night footage of the cube.

We did miss the demonstrations going south, which you’ll likely know resulted in hundreds of arrests. We did hear the helicopters and sirens as Police sprung into action, preemptively arresting people after a group of anarchists started egging them on. Tensions are a little high now, though the majority of all demonstrations have been peaceful.

Monday is now wrapping up and the center of the city, all the way to the Bella Center is policed to within an inch of it’s life. However, we both leave (though I return just 24 hours later) on Tuesday, so Monday became about trying to see everything that was open (like many cities, cultural institutions in Copenhagen are closed on Mondays).

We began by heading to the wrong address for the Poulsen Gallery. But, once we found our mistake, we were able to make it to the installation of Ghost Forest in Thorvaldsens Plads, right around the corner from the real Poulsen Gallery. It’s quite breath-taking, especially with a proper background in the process of getting these stumps here. But, even as we seemed to be some of a few onlookers, there was a constant police presence here and along the canal.

LED at 7 meters high, where the sea will rise here if Greenland's ice sheet melts.

The Poulsen Gallery has been turned over to The Colonel (said phonetically and not as one who serves fried chicken or in the military), the identity of french artist Thierry Geoffroy, as his HQ for a number of evolving projects during COP15. This is serving as the headquarters for the Yes Men and their SurvivaBalls (registered trademark), a series of Critical Runs, Facebook projects, and whatever else they come up with while here. It’s advised to check in with them regularly. Upon my return, I’ll likely head back over to try and talk to some of them about what they are doing. We were lucky to be invited to a semi-junket event, which we’ll get to in a moment.

With the short daylight moments dwindling, we walked to the Bella Center, hoping to find the path set by Glowing Climate, which we were able to find some of as we got closer.

It should be remarked that the Bella Center is not in the center of Copenhagen. It is, from our lodgings, 8.4km or 5.2 miles. From the center of town it is 5.9km or 3.7 miles.

While we didn’t see much until right up to the Bella Center, as the lights from 7m began to appear overhead. Once we were there the walk was worth it. The Pulse of the Earth is a fantastically creepy piece and really lends to the night time, what I’d venture to call semi-apocalyptic scene that is the entrance to the barricaded center. This is entirely appropriate, COP15 itself is semi-apocalyptic. Between the pulsing red lights of the installation, the cold an huddled hopeful observers lined up at the fences, scores of police, Avaaz.org‘s and Climate Action Network‘s Jumbotron showing the award for fossil of the day, press, vegans dressed in animal costumes pass out bags for converts and the ground littered with pamphlets (really now), it was all a bit amazing to see.

As the talks let out, we hopped the metro back into town. We had diner and made it to the Poulsen Gallery event, were we saw a demonstration of the SurviaBall (still a registered trademark), were treated to a song from the Red Suited Climate Debt Agents (accompanied by the green suited Mr. Green from Oxfam), and milled about the gallery while that day’s talks were remixed for ambiance.

We made out way home, finding that it too was lined with the flashing red markers from 7m, just as the reports of clashes between activists and police in Christiania started to make it into our news feed. I had planned to visit Christiania upon returning from the sojourn to London, but that’s now differently colored. Word on the street was that the police had left the area, to some great extent, alone, as to focus on the Bella Center and downtown. As I write, it is being evacuated and those in cafés are being told to leave or be arrested.

It’s getting colder here in Copenhagen, but tensions are starting to boil over.

Tomorrow we both head to London. Miranda will continue to head on home, but I will be there for the Future Arcola launch event at City Hall. I will also , finally, meet William Shaw of the RSA in person, after missing him by hours in Copenhagen.

More recap soon. When I return the museums and exhibition halls will be open, while parts of town are shut down. And I’m curious as to see how we move around the city when Obama arrives on Friday.

Perhaps “Live” is a bit misused here, but we are in Copenhagen right now. I got in yesterday morning and Miranda, after some delays, made it last night. My host, Sara Vilslev, and I made it to Downtown Hopenhagen and met the Wooloo.org/New Life Copenhagen Guys. We also saw a number of pavilions promoting greening living in creative ways.

We’re about to head out for a fullday, but I wanted to share some pictures from our night before we get to far along!

Bikes are the standard in Copenhagen.

Downtown Hopenhagen lit up

Martin from Wooloo.org records pledges to never drink Coca-Cola again for the Yes Men.